INDIA: The government has deferred the implementation of a proposal to make six airbags mandatory in passenger cars by one year to October 1, 2023, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday.
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari announced this today. The rule will be implemented from 1 October 2023.
Earlier, the government had planned to make six airbags mandatory in all eight-seater vehicles from 1 October 2022 to increase safety.
“Given the global supply chain constraints faced by the automobile industry and its impact on the macro-economic scenario, it has been decided to implement a proposal requiring a minimum of 6 airbags in passenger cars (M-1 category) from October 1, 2023,” Mr Gadkari tweeted today.
“The safety of all passengers in motor vehicles, regardless of their price and variants, comes first,” said the minister.
Commenting on the government’s decision to shelve the six-airbag rule, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) spokesman Clyde Crasto tweeted: “The safety of all car occupants is a priority regardless of price, so cars with 6 #airbags are mandatory. from October 2023. But not everyone can afford this option and since ‘security is the priority, will Gadkari ask the government to provide a subsidy?”
On 14 January 2022, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways issued a draft notification that all M1 category vehicles manufactured after 1 October 2022 must be equipped with six airbags.
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